While the Garfield RE-2 School District is closed until April 17, at the earliest, due to COVID-19, the district has been working to still provide free breakfast and lunch to its students.
Thursday, March 18 is the last day for students in Rifle, Silt and New Castle to get those meals since spring break technically begins Friday. Local organizations LIFT-UP and the River Centerwill provide mobile lunch services during the break.
On March 30, the Garfield RE-2 School District will once again offer breakfast from 8:00 to 8:30 a.m. and lunch from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. to students at four different locations in Rifle, one in Silt and two in New Castle.
Locations include:
- Davidson Park in Rifle, 715 Fir Ave.
- Cottonwood Park in Rifle, 27653 U.S. Highway 6
- Joyce Park in Rifle, 595 W 24th St.
- Centennial Park, 300 West 5th St
- Heron's Nest RV Park in Silt, 32956 River Frontage Road
- Burning Mountain Park in New Castle, 243 North 7th St.
- Apple Tree Park in New Castle, 5033 County Road 335
The district's director of communications Theresa Hamilton said this is the same program the district uses during the summer months.
"We are trying through this emergency closure to ensure that as many of our students as possible can have a nutritious meal," Hamilton said.
On the first day of operations, over 200 meals were handed out at the seven locations. Hamilton said the district is expecting to expand the number of locations and increase the number of meals in the coming weeks.
The Garfield RE-2 School District will continue to provide this program until the district re-opens, which is expected to be April 17.